I want to live

Sezel plunged into the black pond, its liquid-like mass swallowing him, a cold abyss claiming his battered form. The ripples stilled, the surface mirroring the starless sky wrapped in eternal dark.

BLURP! GLURP!

Sezel struggled, thrashing his one arm and legs in resistance to the downward pull. His body stilled, strength sapped by the icy depths.

"It's dark, too dark." His mind spiraled, draped in a void, endless darkness stretched around him. Each gasp drew in the viscous liquid, flooding his mouth, seeping through his nostrils. His blood froze, pain lancing his skull, yet his wounds—his pierced chest, his cut-off arm—felt nothing, numbed by the pond's unnatural chill.

"It's peaceful, I want to cry."

His face twisted in agony, but no tears fell, the liquid denying even that release. A gray fog clouded his mind, urging him to surrender, to close his eyes and drift into oblivion.

The Black Knight's blade had missed his heart by a mere sliver, a cruel jest of fate. But was survival a mercy? It only prolonged his torment. "A swift death would've been kinder," he thought, regret gnawing. Why had he run, defying the inevitable?

It could have been a better choice; after all, the efforts still ended up in the same end.

Sezel remembered a selective few of his memories, which were relatively better than all others—not that they were happy memories. His sister's frail smile, her trust in his promise of food and water, surfaced like a blade to his heart.

Drowning in the swift dark liquid of Spirit Realm, he'd never imagined such an end. He wanted to die surrounded by his loved ones, if there would be any. Wasn't that what every soul craved?

As his vision blurred, a butterfly appeared—pristine, its wings shimmering with prismatic light in the dark. It danced before him, a beacon of freedom. "I want to fly… to be free." He reached out, fingers trembling, yearning for its fleeting beauty.

Another hand grasped his—a pale, delicate hand, a young woman's. She emerged, petite, her skin milk-white, purple hair flowing like liquid starlight, synchronized with the pond's currents. Her touch pressed his cheek, cold as the void, devoid of warmth. Her smile, soft yet sinister, sent shivers through his fading soul.

"Oh, poor thing. Hated by the creator itself," her voice, soft and charismatic, yet it carried something he couldn't quite discern.

"Abandoned by your parents just after you were born, abandoned by your friends in this hell."

Sezel's eyes widened, the cold liquid stinging his pupils. "Abandoned by my parents? They died in an accident when I was a child!" His mind churned, chaotic despite the fog.

The girl leapt closer, her face just inches away from his. Slowly she slid it to his ear, "Do you want to live?" Her breath brushed against his ear, but that couldn't be—he was drowning inside a liquid, there was no air around him.

He thrashed, but his body was paralyzed, stiff as death closed its grip. "Am I imagining this?"

Her laughter answered, soft and piercing. "No, poor boy. I'm here, right beside you." Shock flooded his mind, questions piling, but suffocation tightened its grip, his lungs burning.

"Was I ever living to start with? Can this be called life?"

Her purple eyes met his charcoal, piercing his despair. "Is there no one you long to see? Don't you wish to witness the world?"

"The world? Everyone must have forgotten I ever existed. After all, I never did. The world doesn't even care if a rat dies or lives." His thoughts grew faint, his heart pounding, threatening to burst.

"Do you want to live?" she asked again, her voice echoing through his fading consciousness.

On death's edge, Sezel's lips parted, liquid rushing in, choking him. Humans fear death, but Sezel had embraced it—yet, offered a chance, why not seize it? His mind reeled, revisiting his choices. Why had he run? For food, for water, for his sister. If he awakened, would he become a hero, saving humanity? No, that wasn't his path.

"I... I want to live a real life. I want to know what it means to live."

The girl let out a small sinister laugh. "I will lend you some of my powers until you get your own."

"How will I get my own? What do you mean?"

She floated back, graceful as a fish, her finger tracing her lips in a thoughtful pose. With a deliberate smile, she said, "By awakening your Spirit Meridian."

Sezel stared at her blankly, clearly confused—not that he could do any other actions while drowning.

"How is that even possible?"

The girl smiled. Laughing, she hurled closer once more. "Yes, it's simple." She paused, looking at him for a moment, then continued. "You just need to get to the Awakening Shard."

"Awakening Shard? What's that?"

She ignored him, her tone shifting. "Do you have time for chatter, boy?"

Clearly, he didn't. He was drowning and suffocating, death's glare was rendering him useless.

"Go to the west."

The girl vanished into the waves without saying another word.

Sezel felt a stir of strength, his numbness slowly going away. With desperate moves, Sezel propelled himself up. Struggling, he finally managed to touch the surface.

Pulling himself out, coughing out blood and the black liquid, gasping. The pain in his left side and chest returned. He bit his lips, a clean streak of blood flowed down his chin. Drinking his agony, he stumbled back to his feet.

"West."

His eyes narrowed, catching a pulsing yellow light in the distance. Had he missed it before?

Sezel picked up the metallic chain, wrapping it around his right arm—a makeshift weapon. With faltering steps, he marched toward the light, his only hope in this hellish realm. Could it lead to salvation, or another trap?